Once upon a time, there was a mainstream computer language that ran on almost all computer. Everyone was utilizing it everywhere; it was (basically :-)) dominating the industry. Suddenly, it was over. Well, it is inactive there but surely not dominating. We will unravel the emergence and fall of BASIC. What was the language itself? What was it like to usage GOTO everywhere? What were the strengths and weaknesses of the language and its implementations? We will uncover the function that Microsoft played, and even take a peek at any of Bill Gates' code in assembly. And then we will question why it lost popularity, where BASIC stands today, and whether the same destiny could befall Java. Like BASIC itself, this talk is targeted at everyone, from beginners to professionals.
GeeCON 2024: Jarek Ratajski - The communicative of BASIC
Once upon a time, there was a mainstream computer language that ran on almost all computer. Everyone was utilizing it everywhere; it was (basically :-)) dominating the industry. Suddenly, it was over. Well, it is inactive there but surely not dominating. We will unravel the emergence and fall of BASIC. What was the language itself? What was it like to usage GOTO everywhere? What were the strengths and weaknesses of the language and its implementations? We will uncover the function that Microsoft played, and even take a peek at any of Bill Gates' code in assembly. And then we will question why it lost popularity, where BASIC stands today, and whether the same destiny could befall Java. Like BASIC itself, this talk is targeted at everyone, from beginners to professionals.
